Car-door mechanism.



No. 707,342." Patented Aug. l9, I902.

E. J. MULLER.

CAR noon MECHANISM.

(Application filed Apr. 16, 1902.)

(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet l.

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N0. 707,342. Pa tented Aug. [9, I902.

E. J. MULLER.

CAR noon MECHANISM.

(Application filed Apr. 16, 1902.)

(No Model.). 2 Sheets-Sheet. 2.

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NITED STATES PATENT, OFFICE.

EJNAR J. MI ILLER, OF PITTSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO PRESSED STEELCAR COMPANY, OF JERSEY CITY, NEW'JERSEY, A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N 0. 707,342, dated August19, 1902.

Application filed April 16, 1902- To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, EJNAR J. Mi'ILLER, of Pittsburg, Allegheny county,Pennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Car-Door Mechanism, ofwhich the following is a full, clear, and exact description, referencebeing had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of thisspecification, in which Figure 1 is a side elevation of a hopper-carprovided with my improved door mechanism. Fig. 2 is a partial sideelevation of the same on a larger scale, and Fig. 3 is a verticalcrosssection on the line III III of Fig. 1.

My invention relates to the bottom discharge-doors of railway-cars fortransporting granular or lump material, and is designed to provide animproved system for opening and closing such doors.

In the drawings, in which I show the invention as applied to ahopper-car, 2 2 represent the car sides, 3 3 the side sills, and 4 4 thesloping ends of the body. I have shown the car as having a center sillconsisting of two channel-sections 5 5, with a longitudinal,covering-ridge 6. 7 7 are the transverse T irons or angles, which areriveted to the lower flanges of the center-sill channels and the sidesills, and to each T bar are riveted brackets 8, to which the doors 9are pivoted by means of hinge-pins 10. These doors extend between thecenter sill and the side sills and form the floor between the transverseT-bars, which are preferably provided with triangular wooden fillers 11to deflect the material. Each door is preferably provided at each sidewith downwardly projecting bracket portions 12, having inclined faces13. The doors are opened and closed by means of short rollers 14:,contacting with the inclined faces 13 of the bracketsand carried ontransverse shafts 15. Each shaft 15 is hung upon links 16, which arepivoted at'their upper ends to the center sill and side sills,respectively. Each of the shafts 15 projects at its outer end throughthe link, and these projecting portions engage holes in a connecting-bar17. These connecting-bars extend longitudinally of'the car sidesthroughout the door system and are connected at one end to long links18, pivotally connected with levers $eria1 No. 103,175. (No model.)

19. The levers 19 are secured to stub-shafts having ratchet-wheels 20,engaged by pawls 21. The shafts 22 are formed with squared ends, onwhich handles are applied to operate the doors. When the doors areclosed, the links 16 are preferably in an inclined position, as shown inFigs. 1 and 2, the rollers 14. being preferably near the apices of theinclines on the brackets. To open the doors on either side, the pawl 21is knocked out of engagement with ratchet teeth, and the weight of thematerial will at once force the doors down into open position, the partsthen assuming the position shown by dotted lines in Fig. 1. To close thedoors, the shafts 22 are rocked by the handles, thus pushing the.rollers 14 along the inclines of the doors and raising them into closedposition, where they are held by the pawls engaging the ratchets.

The advantages of my invention result from the simplicity andeffectiveness of the door-operating system. The doors are all opperatedsimultaneously along either side of the car-bottom and the mechanism isnot liable to get out of order.

The rollers may be mounted on horizontal slides instead of on the links,as shown. The doors may extend entirely across the bottom instead ofbetween the center and side sills, as shown, and may be used on agondola or other type of car, and the parts may be otherwise varied inconstruction and arrangement Within the scope of my invention.

I claim- 1. A car having a hinged downwardlyswinging door at its bottom,an incline upon the door, and a roller device arranged to act upon theincline to raise or lower the door; substantially as described.

2. A car having a series of downwardlyswinging transversely-extendingdoors, inclines upon the doors,'rollers bearing upon the inclines,and'connections for simultaneously moving the rollers to open or closethe doors; substantially as described.

3. A car having a series of downwardlyswinging doors hinged totransverse pintles, inclines upon the doors, moving elements contactingwith the inclines, and connections for moving said elementssimultaneously to open or close the doors; substantially as described.

4. A carhaving a series of transverse downwardly-swinging doors withtransversely-extending hinges, inclines on said doors, rollers bearingupon the inclines, swinging links carrying the rollers, and a connectionfor swinging the links simultaneously;substantially as described.

5. A car having downwardly swinging doors in its bottom mounted ontransverse pintles, inclines on the bottom portions of the doors,depending links pivoted to the car and provided with rollers bearingupon the inclines, connections between the links on at least one side,and mechanism for swinging the links to open or close the doors;substantially as described.

6. A car having transverse downwardlyswinging doors hinged to transversesupporting shapes in a car-bottom and arranged end to end longitudinallyof the car, said doors having inclines, rollers contacting with theinclines, and connections for simultaneously actuating the rollers toopen or close the doors; substantially as described.

7. A car having a series of downwardlyswinging transverse doorsextending longitudinally of the body, inclines on said doors, rollerscontacting with the inclines, and a rock-shaft having connectionsarranged to move the rollers simultaneously to open or close the doors;substantially as described.

8. A car having a center sill, two series of doors arrangedlongitudinally between the center sill and the car sides, said doorsswinging downwardly on transverse axes, dependin g links having rollersbearing upon inclines on the doors, and rock-shafts having connectionswith the links, each shaft being arranged to swing the links of one setof doors simultaneously; substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand.

EJNAR J. MULLER. Witnesses:

II. M. CORWIN, L. M. REDMAN.

